All Matt LaFleur has done since arriving in Green Bay is win games. The Packers are 56-27 in five seasons and have made the playoffs four times under LaFleur’s leadership.
However, he still doesn’t get enough respect. Things are gradually starting to change after LaFleur led the league’s youngest roster with a first-year starting quarterback into the postseason, but he’s still overlooked.
Last summer’s rankings had LaFleur in the bottom half of 32 NFL coaches. While the Packers’ success in 2023 has helped change that perception somewhat, he is still underrated. That includes a poll by the NFL Players Association that ranked LaFleur 21st in the league.
LaFleur is criticized for “having Aaron Rodgers” earlier, ignoring the fact that he helped Rodgers win back-to-back MVPs. Under LaFleur, the Packers became the first team in NFL history to win 13 games three years in a row.
Luckily, Keynote USA’s Mina Kimes is here to set the record straight.
On a recent episode of The Mina Kimes Show, Kimes ranked the top 10 coaches in the NFL. She has LaFleur at No. 7, but she explained why she could be even higher on the list.
“I feel like Matt LaFleur has a case to be one of the top five head coaches in the NFL right now,” Kimes said. “Last year, Green Bay was the fourth-youngest team in the playoffs, not that year, but in modern NFL history. Six of their 11 starters on offense were rookies or guys in their second year.”
“Everyone was saying, show us you can do it without Aaron Rodgers. Well, he showed you he could do it without Aaron Rodgers,” Kimes said.
That is absolutely correct. LaFleur wasn’t given enough credit because Rodgers was his quarterback, ignoring that he helped unlock some of the best years of Rodgers’ career. Then, in his first year as a starter, Jordan Love reached MVP level with 18 touchdowns to one interception in the final eight games of the regular season. Green Bay reached the NFC Divisional Round and came close to eliminating the San Francisco 49ers.
Kimes added that the biggest criticism of LaFleur was his loyalty to defensive coordinator Joe Barry, something that finally changed this offseason. It’s a fair point. While many believe LaFleur should have replaced Barry sooner, he made a drastic change by bringing in Jeff Hafley and a completely different defensive scheme for 2024.
LaFleur is one of the best coaches in the NFL and continues to prove it. Winning a Super Bowl would cement his legacy, but entering year six in Green Bay, LaFleur deserves more respect: Kimes was absolutely right.
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